Hardworking, good-looking, and heir to daddy's company, Shimano thinks his life's just about perfect. Except that he's working from the bottom up in the company, and he can't seem to get along with Kurokawa, his manager. Competent but flippant, Kurokawa always seems to pay extra attention to Shimano, whether it's teasing him to make him work harder or covering up for his mistakes, which of course drives Shimano crazy. So he has Kurokawa firmly blacklisted until he realizes that Kurokawa's private life isn't a bundle of roses and begins to sympathize...and how are you supposed to hate someone you sympathize with, anyway?

This manga is fun, has very likable characters and a cute but shallow plot.It's hard to put a deep and meaningful and detailed plot into a one or two volume manga so I don't think we need to expect to find gems everywhere.This is just one of those smile-when-you-read-it mangas that feel good and might even make you laugh!I really enjoyed the characters as they were both interesting and while they had some typical issues like jealously and such, there wasn't overly much drama or tears or painful/forced sex scenes.Beside the plot being rather shallow, I also found it worth mentioning that they just move into a relationship very fast. They sort of just both change all the sudden and are in love, even though they knew each other for 2 years at the company and didn't like each other much, no, Shimano even said he hated Kurokawa. Natsume Isaku is great at funny and sweet love stories and I adore her art style and there's no complaints at all on that matter. She draws not as detailed as big names such as Yamane Ayano but her anatomy and such is perfect and she's the only mangaka that can make me go "awwww honey!" with every panel and every face a character makes, lol!I really liked the way it ended and how that topic was right picked up in the 2nd volume of the manga.

If you don't it that they both just slide into it, without mention of sexual orientation or much of a "I like him I guess but cannot say it" phase then you might like this. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a very light and comedic read!

[reviewed as of v02 ch05] i am always missing the sort of depth in natsume's stories that would make them absolute favourites, but i still like them and think they're a cut above the cliched typical BL story with its hackneyed plots and cardboard cutout characters. as others have said, they stand out as much for what they don't do, which is a breath of fresh air in itself. i especially enjoy the more natural flow of her stories because i get worn out by BL melodrama. while the characters are not realistic in the sense that, say, miyamoto kano's characters are realistic, they have that special kind of fiction-truth to them that allows me to take them seriously. i wasn't bored, and i didn't miss the plot because i like slice of life stories which rarely have any plot.

though i've gotta say, her sex isn't hot, alas. now, that doesn't make me rate a BL story lower, and i am fine without any sex whatsoever if the story is good. but if there is sex, i prefer it to be erotic.

when i talk about missing depth, it is the sort of detail that, for example, instead of just telling us that there are socioeconomic differences between the main characters, would use those to be part of the story and possible complications, instead of the much more superficial omiai trope. natsume stops short of serious psychological insight, which keeps me from rating her work among the very top manga. but i would most definitely recommend this to other readers; it's a pleasant and amusing read.

Lally's comment below pretty much sums up my feelings for this manga. One thing I especially enjoy about Natsume's works, Doushiyoumo and her others, is that the emotions and interactions between characters all feel very natural, and very real. Maybe not to the extent of some others, as Natsume does seem to somewhat rely on the archetypal tropes of yaoi manga and doesn't quite break away from the stereotypes to be 100% original, but her works are far better than most I have seen. Her characters are strong and independent, intelligent and witty, and most importantly, believable. She takes an office setting and instead of focusing solely on the romance aspect of an office affair, expertly works in aspects of office life into her story. Most manga I've seen set in an office seems much more interested in dressing the men in suits and possibly throwing in illicit sex here and there, bringing in the 'work' part of the 'office life' only when someone gets transferred in order to create a rift between the characters. In Doushiyoumo, the work plays an important role in the characters' lives, instead of just being thrown in there as an after thought.

Long story short (and please dismiss any incoherent rambling, long day at work): Doushiyoumo Nai Karedo is a must read, listed above are my reasons why. This manga is my ideal idea of an office romance. However, I definitely recommend you picking this up and forming your own opinions.

Although I think brid's points about the plot of the manga are certainly valid, I would be saddened if it put any yaoi fan off reading this. I'll admit that nothing 'major' happens, but I think if you're looking for plot here then you're missing the point. Doushiyoumo Nai Keredo is the exploration of a very sweet and uncontrived relationship. It has a maturity, humour and realness that is not often found in yaoi. The characters are extremely loveable - not because they're cute or hot, but because they're believable. Sure, you'll find lots of other yaoi about how two guys get together, but what sets Doushiyoumo apart is the skill with which Natsume-sensei writes the story. There are no gushing confessions of undying love, no grand seme-to-the-rescue situations, no watery-eyed excessively-screentoned sex scenes. All there is is this very sweet, natural love story.

This series has a lot of positives to it: Each character is a distinct personality with his/her own endearing qualities. Additionally, both leads come off as rather normal males, instead of the usual broad caricatures of uke and seme stereotypes that we normally see. And especially important, there isn't the kind of trashy drama--rape, contrived misunderstandings, etc.--in this manga that we've all come to expect from yaoi.

But for all the good that this series has, I hesitate to recommend it because it offers very little in terms of a plot. The first chapter is the standard "how they got together" and then, after that? The second chapter pushes the relationship a tiny bit forward as a result of some very minor jealousy over how the seme treats his coworkers, and the third chapter offers, essentially, more of the same. (The short fourth and final chapter acts as a prequel.) So while I liked the manga, I also got a little bored with it. There's only so much relationship stuff I can take without the benefit of a larger plot to provide some coherency to the manga. As I was reading, I felt like I was waiting for a "so what?" that never came: The manga presented us with two men who were very different personality types and from very different backgrounds, but so what? Other than being used as an excuse for their different personality quirks, it didn't actually matter to the development of the story that they had such radically different socioeconomic backgrounds. Without much of a purpose to the overall plot (other than getting the two guys to commit to one another), I find myself uninterested in reading the second volume as I can't see what else of interest or meaning could possibly be left to say about this couple.

Awesome story, great art and expressions on the characters. The story basically follows two guys who work together and their relationship from coworkers, to friends to lovers. I'd say it avoids a lot of cliches in BL you see : no super seme, no rape means love, no weak willed girly uke, no flowery language of love and devotion. There are misunderstandings and drama, but they aren't so melodramatic you roll your eyes. The sex scenes are tastefully done and are not what the story it built around. The story is just adorable for the most part. I love how she has her characters touch each other, hugs and kisses and caresses. It makes for a believable story and their relationship more believable. Reading it you can feel the love between the two characters. In the genre where a lot of mangaka use sex to portray love it's rare they actually build an emotional connection between the characters that goes beyond sex. Nothing in all that original in this, but how it's done is just wonderful.

ETA:

To answer the above review about the plot, this is more of a slice of life story than anything plot driven (though things do pick up a bit the middle of the 2nd volume). I would say that even though Shimano does come from a high class and rich background, you only have to look at his father, and one of Kurosawa's best friends, to realize you aren't going to have typical star crossed lovers scenario. Shimano is rich, but he's hardly the pampered young master with the snooty relaitves. He's pretty much a normal guy for the most part. I actually loved that even though they were different, it wasn't such a big deal in the long run. Neither character follows stereotypes so often seen in manga.

This is a great series, it has the potential to run alot longer then 2 short volumes. It's funny, sexy and real. I especially love the way the characters all kind of flow together. To bad it's the only one of this artists works being scanned.

You know the cardboard cut-out yaoi you download every once in a while when you're tracking down other things? This series should be one of those, but it's actually, well, *lovely*. The art's not amazing, apart from the wonderful way the mangaka draws eyes and expressions, and the plot looks like it's been done before - of course it then goes on to surprise you with depth, humour, honest-to-goodness emotion, a wonderful central relationship with two interesting characters, and and and-. Aaah, I love this series!

Thinking about it (ETA!) what makes this such a good yaoi is the sheer number of things it *doesn't* do: the ex-wife is not a sneaky harpy, the helper isn't trying to get into the pants of either of the main characters, sex doesn't fix everything, and the protagonist's neediness isn't off-putting, but instead very human. Still loving this series to pieces.